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FAQ

Updated: Jun 5


You've got questions...

...we've got answers (to the most frequently asked questions)

Whispered is early in its journey (most of our founders still have day jobs) but we are deeply committed to our mission, with every decision guided by our core principles

For Executives (aka Candidates)

Executives are who we built Whispered for. We have a unique model that makes searching for a full-time executive role less scary. Learn more about our model and how we charge below.

How does Whispered help executives looking for roles?

Whispered helps executives accelerate their job search with tactics and databases.  Whispered addresses six challenges executives face in their job search

Does Whispered find me a job?

Whispered helps you search better but your success is all about what you put into it.  Executives who “work out loud” are incredibly successful with Whispered.

Is Whispered career coaching?

Whispered focuses on helping you accelerate your search once you have clarity, while coaches focus on helping you get that clarity. See details on how Whispered and career coaching are different and complimentary.

What do I get with Whispered Free membership?

Whispered's free membership gives you:

What do I get with Whispered Paid membership?

We provide a complete system to help you find your next full-time role.  Whispered doesn’t do your search for you, but it equips you to do it better by helping you:

 

Unposted roles are definitely a key part of how we help executives but they aren’t a silver bullet.  See quotes from executives about the ways Whispered helped them.

Why do you charge executives?  How do you structure your fee?

Companies spend billions to find and evaluate talent but, until Whispered, executives had nobody in their corner.  Our founders felt the pain of executive job searches and we’ve built the model that each of us would have paid for.  Learn "why Whispered charges candidates" and how our model compares with other options.

Do you offer trials?

No. We structure our fee with both an upfront and monthly so if you aren't getting value, you can stop at any time but we do not offer free trials and do not waive the upfront fee (there are discounts available if you are referred by a partner). We invest time upfront and believe that people need to fully commit to their search to be successful vs. viewing Whispered as a way to find a few unposted roles.   Recognizing that this model isn't for everyone, we work to give away as much of our expertise and databases as possible for free.

Can you help multiple executives who are seeking the same role?

Definitely.  Here is how we approach it:

  • We believe that it is better to know (and collaborate) with other executives and know the other folks competing for a role. This allows you to share insights on the role / company and even figure out which of you is best qualified.

  • For roles with multiple executives searching concurrently, we have exclusive community channels where they can collaborate together.  You are welcome to opt-out of this but we find the support and collaboration provide great value.  Learn more about the power of searching together.

  • If a role isn’t fit for one executive, they can refer others in: There are many different skill sets and levels of seniority (as well as Geo/Industry focuses) so we frequently see executivtes refer each other in.

  • We only admit members who are collaborative: We assess this upfront.

  • You can share roles privately and work them first.  Call this out in your submission and the role will be added to the database but not slacked and only visible to you and whispered leaders.

How do you determine if I am listed in the Executive Directory and what information do you share?

Please see details about security, qualification, your profile and fields here.


For Partners

Whispered works in collaboration with recruiters, talent partners, investors and companies to connect great talent to great companies.

Do partners have to pay for Whispered?

No. Whispered is free for all partners

How do I partner with Whispered?

Review the pages for each partner type and drop us a line at partner@whispered.com. If you want to explore a new type of partnership we love collaborating to connect talent and companies.


Roles

A core feature of Whispered is our deep database of unposted roles. Learn how to submit and how we secure access to these roles.

What does each role status mean?

In our role database we have the following statuses

  • ​🟢 Posted These are publicly posted roles that you can find a back-door into.

  • 🟠 Unposted - Rumor  Shared by another executive, roles that will likely soon be hired for. 

  • 🟠 Unposted - Recruiter  A recruiter has the role

  • 🟠 Unposted - Company A company is hiring directly for the role

  • 🌕 Whispered Role™️ Whispered is partnered with the company / recruiter who has allowed Whispered to anonymously share and send them candidates.    

  • 🔴 Unposted - Confidential A role where company name is not revealed, even to Whispered members.  

  • ⚪️ Closed Roles that were posted but no longer available

How are roles secured?

We give the person who submits a role the power to determine how their roles are shared.  When you submit a role, you can select from:

Why can only paid members access unposted roles?

There are a number of reasons why companies and recruiters don't post roles.  We respect those reasons and have built a model to work with companies / recruiters to make these roles available quietly to qualified candidates who respect that confidentiality.  We have built our model in partnership with top recruiters to ensure they are comfortable that roles shared with Whispered remain confidential and don’t spread publicly. To maintain confidentiality for our partners, unposted roles are only available to vetted, premium members who agree to our confidentiality policy. To help as many executives as possible, in January 2025 we began allowing companies the ability to post their role as a Whispered Role™️ and let non-Whispered members apply.  With the launch of our new platform in Q12025, you will be able to see anonymous descriptions of select Whispered Roles™️ and apply anonymously. .  

Do you ever open-up Confidential Roles?

Confidential roles allow members to share roles just with our team and get a head-start. We believe that collaborating on searches is powerful and have aligned with our members how we handle confidential roles and when we open them up

  • If Whispered learns about this role independently, we will move the role to 🟠  We will not use information provided from the member to chase the role but may leverage the information with recruiters to deepen our relationships with them

  • Whispered will alert talent partners at investors of 🔴 roles  We have a powerful process with talent partners we trust.  We will only add talent partners who understand that roles are secured and shared in confidence.  Sharing 🔴 roles helps us create additional connections for you and we will make sure talent partners know these aren’t necessarily viewable by all Whispered members.

  • If Whispered learns about a role from more than one member, we will move the role to 🟠 We believe this will benefit all members and allow you to better collaborate with other members on a role.

  • After 30 days we will check with the posted to explore moving the role to 🟠  We believe this window will give members time to drive hard on the role to get in early while at the same time giving other members visibility (both for this immediate role and also to let members historically look back at what roles companies hired for).  If you are ready to share with all members sooner, please let us know!

What is a Whispered Role™️?

A Whispered Role™️ is an unposted executive opportunity shared confidentially through Whispered’s network. It gives companies and recruiters the reach of a posted role while keeping company details private, ensuring top candidates see opportunities they wouldn’t otherwise find.


Confidentiality

Whispers don't happen when people don't trust who they whisper to. Confidentiality is a foundational principle for us at Whispered.

How do you protect the confidentiality of executives?

We know that searching for a role (particularly while in another role) is scary.   All executives agree to our confidentiality policy and we allow each executive to determine if they are included in our Executive Directory which is only accessible through secure login by approved recruiters.  Please also refer to our Privacy Policy for full details. 

How do you protect the confidentiality of roles and insights shared with Whispered?

All company insight contributions are anonymous (we do verify identity upon submission) and we've designed our roles database to give submitters full control of how loudly their role is whispered (see more details above).

Do you use AI?

Yes:  We use AI to allow us to scale ourselves in the following ways:

  • Executives:  Review executives profiles and categorize based on the fields listed here

  • Executives:  Chat about your search, share advice / coaching and... coming soon suggestions on breakout companies and Whispered roles!

  • Companies:  Add fields to help executives identify breakout companies.

  • Investors:  Identify which companies they have invested in and recent funding.


Company Insights

Executives, investors and others whisper confidential insights on companies to us. These help our executives spot breakout companies and know which to avoid.


How does Whispered get confidential insights on companies?

Executives who interview with companies can ask detailed questions. For years they have been confidentially sharing them with us. Investors also share insights with us, typically in return for credits to understand breakout companies and their portfolio. You can contribute and earn credits today.

How do you protect the confidentiality of insights?

See our Confidentiality section above

Does Whispered edit company insights?

We do not edit user-provided data unless it violates our company insight guidelines. We use AI to integrate new insights with prior insights.

How are tags added to company insights?

We use AI to tag insights. We always love suggestions of new tags.

How do I get approved for access to company insights?

You can apply in-app. We will ask you to review and accept our confidentiality agreement. We approve people based on the following guidelines.

What do you do if a company doesn't like an insight that's been posted about them?

We are happy to connect with the company and work with them either to add additional information or remove the insight completely. If we remove the insight we will notify our community that the insight was removed at company’s request. Companies can contact us via support@whispered.com


Credits

Our data is provided by executives and partners. We use credits to incentivize and track contributions.

Why does Whispered use credits?

Whispered's app operates on a system of credits because we want to:

  • Incentivize Contributions: Core to the model of Whispered is "paying it forward".  We built credits into our model early to encourage people to share data to help others. 

  • Share Broadly:  Whispered started with a few executives sharing insights to help each other in their searches.  We want to help as many executives as possible make the right company choices.  Credits allow us to share company insights securely and broadly.

  • Avoid selling information:  While certain features of Whispered are gated to paid members, we resist selling data/jobs and instead focus on offering a complete solution to help executives.

How do I earn credits?

You can earn credits in the following ways:

  • Contributions of company insights:  1-5 credits (depending on how insightful they are;)

  • Contributions of unposted roles:  1 Credit per role

  • Refer users who mention you by name during signup:  1 Credit

  • Tag us in a post on LinkedIn:  We'll give you a credit for the post + 1 for each person who signs up off it and references your post (this last piece we track as best we can;)!

  • Connect us to a new talent partner or recruiter  We know many but always love connecting with new ones.  If you have one you think we should meet, email us at partner@whispered.com

  • Premium members receive unlimited credits

How can I use credits?

Credits can be used within the Whispered app for:

  • Company insights:  Upon approval you can use credits.  1 credit is debited each time an insight is accessed

  • Roles:  Credits can only be used for unposted roles by paid members

Why can't I use credits for roles without a paid membership?

We have worked with top recruiters to help them feel comfortable that roles shared with Whispered remain confidential and don’t spread publicly. To maintain confidentiality for our partners, unposted roles are only available to paid members who each agree to our confidentiality policy.


More Questions?

Whispered is a new model. We love hearing questions and learning from you. Chat with our AI Coach (who is trained on all Whispered knowledge and information) or email us at support@whispered.com


 


 




 
 
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